Done buying Hatchbox

A place to post your fails. We know you got 'em, now share what you think caused 'em
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ivanhandler
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Done buying Hatchbox

Post by ivanhandler »

I just went through 2 failed prints that took hours before the fail. I was using Hatchbox glow in the dark PLA. It failed because the filament was crossed way into the spool in 2 places. The first place was about 5 hours in (at 50 mm/sec) and the second the mess was when the strand of filament crossed under several other loops (not all adjacent either!). That happened after about 8 hours. I thought they were a reputable source of filament, my mistake. I'm a topologist by training (knot theorist) and I have no idea how this can happen. All I can say is to hell with them. What kind of QA department do they have?
Qdeathstar
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Re: Done buying Hatchbox

Post by Qdeathstar »

I've used hatchbox a lot and haven't had a problem. It's not my go to filament, i actually prefer matterhackers filament... but if i need a certain color fast, i can get hatchbox delivered next day... i got a spool of black and light blue abs im using right now... no issues.
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DeltaCon
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Re: Done buying Hatchbox

Post by DeltaCon »

I know from experience that a cross-wind can be carried many meters into the spool before it becomes a problem. I don't want to put the blame on your own side, but I cannot image that these spools are getting hand-winded, and I don't see how automatically winded spools could become crossed. It sure needs some discipline to prevent crossing while changing spools.
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Jimustanguitar
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Re: Done buying Hatchbox

Post by Jimustanguitar »

I've printed dozens of rolls of HatchBox, and I've only had "chemistry" or mixture issues. I've rejected a couple of parts due to color and pigmentation inconsistencies, and I had one freak occurrence where the nozzle seemed like it was backed up, so I fed it by hand to spit out a glob and then it dripped plastic like it was a liquid for about an inch...

I doubt very much that they somehow tied a knot in your spool, the way that it's manufactured that's just really really unlikely. What's more plausible is that their winder didn't track left and right smoothly as it wound up the filament, causing a high side and a low side that 'collapsed' and caused inner wraps to cover up outer wraps... Does that make sense?
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Re: Done buying Hatchbox

Post by Xenocrates »

I've had issues with hatchbox that looked like a crossed spool once or twice, but they were either as Jim put it, or because I'd taken that spool on and off the printer a few times. Also, red ABS from them seems really bad, but black is alright. I've gone to Design Shop filament more recently for the cheap stuff, and it seems more consistent.
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ivanhandler
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Re: Done buying Hatchbox

Post by ivanhandler »

I've usually had good luck with Hatchbox as well. I think I know what must of happened though and it is disturbing if I am correct. The only way the spool could have become knotted is if the spool fell off the spooling machine during the winding. Then if someone put it on in a hurry they could have inadvertently knotted the filament. But that means it must have happened twice on this spool. I have no other explanation.
cruzinbill
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Re: Done buying Hatchbox

Post by cruzinbill »

It was always so hit or miss for me with their stuff. I ended up trying the filament from pushplastic and am beyond happy with the quality and consistency. So pretty much have them as my go to filament now.
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Re: Done buying Hatchbox

Post by Dionysus480 »

I'm just going to chime in to support the OP. I do switch spools pretty frequently. However, the SeeMeCNC spools had never knotted and jammed a print on me. I bought several spools of Hatchbox and started hearing a weird noise (I remember it even on the first print. Thinking something had damaged the printer itself, I was "relieved" to discover the noise coming from the spool.)

I understand all the points made. All I can say is that the SeeMeCNC filament, and the Taulman Filaments, have never done that to me, and the Hatchbox does it fairly consistently.

Maybe its the tension on the filament as its spooled, or the tracking of the winder, or something, but I've noticed the knotting problem as well. I'm looking at the matterhackers filament for future purchases (wife says I need to use up some of my spools before I can buy more... gonna be a while I guess.)

Totally willing to admit the frequency I switch spools probably accentuates the problem.
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